Paid in Blood
by 0-Master of Awe-0
Summary: The Uzumaki were hailed as one of the strongest Ninja clan during the Warring Era; not for their physical prowess or great mystical might, but rather for their ingenuity. The ability to subdue creatures taller than mountains lead to their doom. The ghost of the deceased only yearned for one thing, the return of their clan to greatness, and one man is determine to do just that.
1. Revelation

**Chapter 1 - Revelation**

 **Published Dater - January 2, 2016**

 **Writer - Master of Awe**

 **Disclaimer - A publicly recognize characters and others belongs to their respective owner.**

* * *

Porcelain skin with delicate feature glowed hauntingly under the pale radiance of the full moon. Crimson tresses cascaded down her lean shoulder and onto her slim waist before resting on her firm and shapely rear. Ghostly violet eyes shimmered with tears as blood of the purest red flowed from the large hole in her stomach.

The woman was undoubtedly beautiful. Even in her battered and dying form, her beauty knows no bound. They eclipsed the radiant of her fellow human and breached into the realm of the divine. A beauty that was envied by the angels...was now finally going to rest in their realm for eternity.

...and yet, the beauty was marred by the utter grief beheld on her face. Once a sight to behold now rest a dreary visage filled with anxiety and dread. With absolutely no strength left in her body, she managed to crawl to the little pedestal erected by her beloved half; the man that loved and cherished her through all of life's terrible ordeal, and one that possibly intended to condemn the product of their love to a life filled with loneliness and misery.

It was quite funny how one's life can change just from an action of someone else. From stealing a person's wallet to raiding their home, and even to have a demon sealed within them. By their own parents no less.

Demon. That was the nicest description allow to the massive being behind the woman. Gargantuan amount of energy given consciousness, a ball of rage the size of the moon compressed into a single, vulpine form. A being that does not understood the meaning of kindness nor love. A creature born from the resentment of a primordial deity and raised by perpetual hatred that engulfed the land. How could such a being, such Beast be allow to stand in the presence of someone so angelic and pure? May Hades rises up to engulfed the beast and may Heaven strike such deformity from the face of the Earth before it dare harm the fair beauty.

Unfortunately, the army of Hell lay undisturbed by the scene and the host of Heaven watched with unblinking eyes. Such was the fate of mankind. To suffer in the hand of each other while beings of supernatural might stood by and watch from the sideline.

"▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉!" The Beast's roar shook the land, rumbling the infinite cavern of Hell and disturbing the peaceful chimes of Heaven. Such power belonging to the realm of Gods was trapped to roam the land of mortal.

A creature with enough might to incinerate an island with but a single breath and turn the entire landscape into nothing more than infernal purgatory...laid motionless atop a squadron of trees, powerless against the ethereal chains binding it in place, struggling against the weapon of holy origin. Even though the host of Heaven may not directly interfere with mortal, it does not mean that they did not bless the one they deemed worthy, their champion.

A Beast capable of unimaginable horror was brought down by the grace of the angelic Beauty standing before it.

Chains of the purest white that shimmered in the dark night with holy radiance rose by the hundreds, all at the behest of a single woman. With tips sharp enough to penetrate the Gates of Heaven, they all rained down on the trapped beast.

The woman finally made it to the pedestal that contained the single most valuable possession she has, a gift given to her by the man she loved with all her heart; her son. He laid there, crying as the roar of the Beast engulfed the land with its stentorian cry.

"Sheee, my dear Naruto. Don't cry, mommy will protect you." Picking up the bundle into her arm, she wrapped her slender arms around him. "No monster can get past Kushina Uzumaki, ya know!" She attempted to joke but end up gasping deeply in pain. "I will always be there for you, even if you were to never remember me." Her ghostly violet eyes shine with unprecedented amount of sorrow as her gaze transfixed on her first and only child. "I will always be with you…" with her delicate and bloody finger, she touched the area around his heart. "...in there. I love you, my little Naruto, no matter what happen." Tears rain down on his person as she could not prevent them from overflowing from her eyes. "I only hope that one day you could forgive us for placing this burden onto you. I love you."

Then darkness engulfed everything.

* * *

Sitting up, Naruto released a big gasp. His hand cupping his chest as his heart beat with reckless abandon; sweats covering his form. Taking a deep breath, he looked around, mentally calming himself down upon noticing the pile of dirty clothes scattered around the floor; he was in his room.

'What the hell was that?' He thought, clutching his forehead as his breath ragged on. The...dream he just had was unlike its predecessors; it was vivid, it was horrifying. Shaking his head in fail attempt to get rid of the dream, he released a a calming breath. Throwing the thin sheet of blue-dyed cotton away, he got out of the bed and stood up.

"Ugh." Stretching his arm back and cracking his head, Naruto look out towards the open window and frown when noticing the half moon glaring at him with its heavenly gaze. "There's no way I'm going back to bed after that." He slowly muttered to himself before opening his closet, and grabbed a pair of black sweat pants and his traditional orange jacket.

Zipping up his jacket, Naruto grabbed the key he kept by the door and exited, making sure to lock the door and even inspecting it twice. He refused to make the same mistake twice.

With a quick burst of chakra, he hopped down onto the barren street with his arm in his pocket. Circulating his chakra through the sole of his foot, he managed to cushion a fall from a two story height.

Releasing a content sigh, Naruto walked on the empty street with street lamps being the only thing that allow his vision to prosper. It felt good to have chakra circulating throughout his body. Not only does it provide him with some warmth, it give him a sense of control.

Shaking his head, he hang low when noticing some noteworthy people around the street doing questionable thing. It was not his business to dwell on how these people decide to spent the rest of their life. Walking with no real destination in mind, his mind wander back to the vivid dream he just experienced. It was unlike anything he had experienced before.

For one, he felt like he was actually there. He could taste the coppery air due to residual blood. He could see the utter terror that was the Nine Tailed Fox in its primal form, corded muscle capable of destroying mountain with ease littered its body, covered by deep orange furs as long and sharp as bastard swords, nine gargantuan tails of the same color swishing around causing turbulence winds at each swipe, and especially its eyes. Oh man, its eyes! Twin orbs of crimson, the symbol of divine parentage, filled with hate and utter loathing at everything and anything.

It was truly destruction given form, hatred given conscious.

Despite all that, he felt that the tailed beast was a bit wanting compared to the majestic sight that was the angel in front of it. Flowing scarlet hair that shined under the full moon frame a face so beautiful that Lucifer himself would proclaim defeat. Body filled with so much grace and beauty that they eclipsed those of any and all high class lady walking amongst mankind. She was beauty incarnate, the manifestation of mankind's definition of the word 'beautiful'.

Something about her, not just her beauty, seemed to just draw him in. It's like she was the Fruit of Knowledge and he was Adam: unable to overcome the basic desire to get close. She even felt familiar to him, like Naruto knew her from somewhere, but that could not possibly be true. He would no doubt remember an encounter with such a fine young woman.

She seems to radiate this aura of warmth that he could felt even though it was just a mere dream. Like a warm blanket under a cool winter, he could not help but relax under such a presence, and it scared him. Being raised a Ninja, he had it drilled into his head to never lower his guard, ever. Even a person who ditched on a regular basis like him knew that, and it frightened him how a mere apparition of a stranger could do that to him. Naruto knew he was not what people call the 'ideal shinobi', but he was no pushover either. The bruises on Kiba's shoulder should be proof enough.

It was also what she said to him that got him riled up. She said her name was Kushina Uzumaki, _Uzumaki_ , and that she was his mother. The woman even said his name for crying out loud. She said she hoped he will forgive her for placing a burden on him. He assume that was the Nine Tailed Fox. The way she spoke clearly indicate that she was someone close to him, plus her facial features kind of look like his, so she might be his mother _if_ the dream was more than a dream. But how was that even possible. He was no doctor, but he knew that human being are not suppose to remember the day of their birth unless they have some weird defect of course. Naruto was pretty sure he does not have eidetic memory or else he would have past all those written exams during the Academy year.

"Man! I don't what she meant?!" He screamed out in frustration, before quickly covering his mouth with both hand. Luckily he seemed to be in a park so the sound did not bounce around as it would have if he were to be surrounded by building.

"Ha! Woman trouble, kid?" Naruto jumped in surprise, his head snapping to the side to see a figure cloaked in shadow leaning against the street lamp.

"Who are you?" He asked defensively, tensing his body as chakra circulate through his body in a much faster pace in case a fight broke out. One can never be too careful at a late night encounter.

"Calm down, kid." The man stepped into the light, revealing his tall stature that dwarfed Naruto's own smaller frame. Wide frame covered by green short shirt kimono and matching pant with a red vest with two yellow circles decorating each side over it. His long, spiky white hair reached his shoulder and frame his face not unlike a lion's mane. "Just a wandering hermit who had his fair share of woe involving mankind's fairer halves."

"Uh huh." Naruto was not convinced. He could clearly see the muscle poorly hidden beneath that kimono of his and the fierce gleam in the man's eyes that he saw quite often in his sensei, Kakashi. "And what would a solitary like yourself be doing in a village like the Hidden Leaf?" The man did not react like Naruto expected and just shrugged uncaringly.

"Who know." The man walked forward, and Naruto tensed his body in preparation for an attack. The self-proclaimed hermit seemed almost amuse by this as he walk past the blonde ninja and sat at the wooden bench parallel to his first spot. "Maybe it's the dumplings this village is famous for, or the Maple Trees with its crimson leaves during this time of years." A grin suddenly spread across his lips as he giggled. It look quite disturbing from Naruto's angle. "Or that Coed Hot Spring."

The blonde haired ninja shook his head with a slight tug of his lips. "What a pervert," he muttered. The elder man took note of this and his giggles turned into a loud laugh.

"Ha, so you can smile!" He barked with an infatuating smirk on his face and arm cross underneath his chest. The Nine Tailed host gave him an unamused glance.

"What makes you think I can't, huh?" The white haired man just glance at him with that infuriating smirk of his.

"Well…" Naruto frowned as the man stretched the word. "Ever since I saw you walking around here, you had that constipated expression firmly cemented on your face. Why? Does it have anything to do with a girl?" He raised his eyebrows suggestively while Naruto just scoffed at that.

"I don't see how it's any of your business?" He stated hotly, his temper flaring as he crossed his arm under on his chest. "I barely know you, you perverted old man."

"Now now, don't be like that, kid. I'm just trying to help you out, honest."

"Please, like some person in this village would care about me." Naruto could not help but laced his tone with bitterness as he remembered all those time the villagers ignored him and cursed him when his back was turn.

"Oh, but I do." The man's smile dimmed slightly, but the honesty in his voice remained firm. Naruto looked at him, surprise evidenced in his face.

"Wha-Why?" The white haired man just shrugged nonchalantly causing Naruto to silently wonder if he ever takes anything seriously.

"You kind of remind me of my old apprentice." The hermit gaze locked on the half moon atop the night sky. "He too refuse to open up to me at first, and he had a troubled past."

"H-How do you know I have a troubled past?" The man just gave him a big smile.

"The way you kept shifting your feet indicate that you are not use to having a conversation this long. The slight tightening of your fist is a sign that you are ready for a fight if one were to broke out. And, most importantly…" he leaned in causing Naruto to leaned back subconsciously. "..I could tell from your eyes that you've experienced great toil at an early age."

"...uh." The blonde haired Genin did not know how to respond after the throughout analysis of him. The white haired hermit reached out and and touched his shoulder. The action caused him to flinched despite not wanting to.

"Your facial structure kind of match his too, maybe you guys are related. Your hair color are totally different though. His was red." The hermit shrugged, squeezing Naruto's shoulder as he stand up from the bench. "Anyhow, I think I've stayed in the place long enough. I really need to go prepare for my research." He giggled, letting go of the blonde and walked away. He stopped about a meter away from Naruto. "And remember kid, no matter what trouble you find yourself in, or whatever nightmare that's haunting you, never give up. With resolve and dedication, nothing is beyond your reach."

And the white haired hermit disappeared into the night, leaving nothing but a faint wisp of white powder.

"...resolve and dedication huh?" A faint smile appear on his lips, his mind clearing the image of the bloody woman away. "There is no way that man's a hermit." Putting his hands back into his pocket, he walked home, leaving the confusion and anxiety behind.

* * *

Hidden behind the ever-dark shadow of the roof, a man with short, spiky ivory hair stood, leaning against the rusted metal rail with one hand tuck behind his back pocket and another holding an orange covered book. His lone eye peered into the pages, absently rereading the passage he long since memorized.

"That was some good advice just now, Master Jiraiya." Not a moment too soon, the white haired hermit that recently talked to Naruto appear before him.

"Ah, Kakashi, long time no see. Enjoying my latest novel I see." The one-eyed ex-Anbu captain give a small nod, his eyes remain on the passage.

"Yes, it is very entertaining to say the least, and I see that the more...erotic aspect of the story are quite less compared to other in the series." The white haired Ninja laughed uncomfortably at the remark.

"Well, my publisher decided that I should appeal to a wider array of audience so I had to decrease the juicier bits in exchange for some romance development. It's suppose to attract female reader I suppose."

"Hm." Kakashi does not seem to care for the reason for he was just making an observation, leaving the area to fell into silence. "So I see you are taking an interest in my student."

"Now now, no need to say it like that. I was just helping out a fellow Leaf shinobi, nothing else."

"Hm." The White Fang's heir does not appear convinced as he flipped another page, his eye linger on the chapter's title. "And talking to Naruto had nothing to do with the fact that he's the Fourth's son?" Jiraiya appeared startled for a moment, his eyes widened considerably before he chuckled.

"I guess it should've been obvious to you, huh?" Kakashi just shrugged, turning another page even though he did not finish the last one. He already know what happened in that chapter anyway.

"There's only one Uzumaki in the Hidden Leaf back then, and she was always hanging around sensei's arm. Even with the blonde hair, his feature has an uncanny resemblance to Lady Kushina's." Putting his index finger at the center of the book, he locked his lone eye with Jiraiya's. "It also help that sensei assigned me to personally look after her during the course of the pregnancy." The Sannin just shook his head.

"I shouldn't be surprise. You are his favorite student after all." Kakashi made no indication to answer, so he continued. "So. I heard about your mission to the Wave Country. Pretty impressive for a team of Genin to be able to complete an A-Rank mission like that. You guys even faced one of the Seven Swordsmen of Mist and survived, very neat. Although considering they had Kakashi of the Sharingan with them, I shouldn't be surprise."

"You flatter me, Master Jiraiya. Zabuza actually captured me for a moment. The only reason I made it out alive was due to the great teamwork shown between Naruto and Sasuke." The legendary Toad Sage scoffed at that.

"Please, like you would ever allow someone as weak as that so called Demon of the Mist to be able to trap you. I heard you were bounded by the Water Prison Technique. Your natural affinity is Lightning, Kakashi. I know you could've escape easily by something as basic as simple elemental manipulation." The white haired Jōnin made no move to protest. "I bet you just let him trap you to see how your team would react. I don't doubt it for a second that if one of them got seriously hurt, you would've quit playing around and destroy that Zabuza. After all, no regular ninja can take on an S-Class shinobi like yourself." Kakashi gave Jiraiya a look before snapping his book shut, tucking it inside his pouch.

"Why are you really here, Master Jiraiya? I highly doubt that you came all the way to evaluate my recent mission."

"Ho ho! Can't a man just be concern about the welfare of his fellow shinobi?"

"Ah, so you're here because of Naruto," deduced the ex-Anbu Captain as he turned around and looked at the blonde haired Genin walking home. "You traveled all the way here just because you heard about Naruto's first A-Rank mission?" The Sannin huffed before crossing his arm.

"I'm just worried about the welfare of my godson. There's nothing wrong with that, Kakashi."

"You needn't be so worry, Master Jiraiya. After all, Lord Hokage consider Naruto to be like a grandson to him, and took appropriate measure to secure his safety." He tilted his head towards a branch of a rather large tree. Under the veil of the night, a white, porcelain mask of a cat frame by alluring purple hair stood; eyeing the blonde Genin through the eyelid on her mask. Jiraiya shook his head, having notice the female Anbu during his talk with Naruto. A frown on his face.

"I'm not too troubled by his physical well being, it's that head of his that I'm worried about. From that brief meeting, it was easy to deduce that something's been bothering him, clouding his mind. I know that that is not uncommon among teenagers, but I'm just worried that-"

"That he'll have no one to talk to," Kakashi interrupted, turning to face the rails, his lone eye linger on the blonde haired Ninja walking down the poorly lit road, blissfully unaware of the Anbu following him or the two S-Class Ninja watching over him.

"Exactly, and he appears to not be the type that's into sharing private thoughts with others, even if they are trusted friend. He is Kushina's son after all. He'll sooner battle a battalion of Hidden Stone shinobi than have a one on one session with a therapist."

"Hm, I suppose." The famed Hero of the Third Great Ninja War did not offer anything else as the two reveled in silence for a few minute. "You still did not answer my question, Master Jiraiya. Why are you here?" The Toad Sage stared at him in bewilderment.

"Didn't I just say my reason not a moment ago?"

"Hm. If you really did just come here for Naruto, then you would've left after your little discussion with him. But instead, you decide to grace me with your presence instead, in a middle of the night. Care to explain?" Jiraiya just stared at the white haired Jōnin for a moment before bursting into laughter.

"HaHaHa, nothing can get past you, I see. HaHaHa." The wielder of the famed Sharingan remain still as the Sannin laughed uncontrollably. "You are right, Kakashi, I do have a reason for meeting with you. Its more of a request than anything really."

"Hm, and what's that?"

"Nothing much. I just want you to teach young Naruto how to unlock and control his bloodline, that's all." Kakashi looked at the white haired Sage like he was crazy.

"You do know that the Adamantine Sealing Chains only appears in a few Uzumaki, correct? What makes you think Naruto will be able to use it?" The self-proclaimed hermit just shrugged before giving him that smirk that tells him that the man knew something he did not.

"Call it a hunch, if you must."

"Hn. I suppose even if he possess such rare and valuable gift, what makes you think I'll be able to teach him anything about it. The Sharingan might be a very powerful tool, but it does not let me perform something as complex as genetically modifying my Chakra to be able to create the chains."

"It is as you say, the Sharingan is a very powerful weapon, one that lets the user see the Chakra matrix of every Technique the user witness and performs them with utmost accuracy. Don't tell me that in all the nine months you spent stalking Kushina, you've never seen her use those chains. If you catch so much as a simple glance of it, that Sharingan of yours would've memorized everything from the necessary Chakra output to its composition." The man shrugged. "Granted you will never be able to perform the technique yourself, but you will be able to learned everything about it and how to perform it theoretically." Kakashi held Jiraiya's eyes for a moment before relenting with a sigh.

"You're right, Master Jiraiya. I have seen Lady Kushina perform such Techniques on multiple occasions, mostly because she was bored, and I was able to memorize everything about the move and possibly teach it to Naruto," he admitted with resolution before his eye sharpened and peered into the Toad Sage own orbs with curiosity. "Forgive me for the intrusion, but may I incur as to why you are so interested in Naruto's development. And don't say that you just want your godson to be stronger for if that was the case you would've just train him yourself. Instead you want me to teach him something he can only learn from me given the circumstances. It is almost like you're trying to gear him up for a task of some kind." His answer was in a form of Jiraiya's shoulders slumping as worried lines marred his face.

"Handling a spy network is no easy task, Kakashi," he began, putting his arm on the rails as he leaned in. "It is not for the weak of heart as one must ventured through disputed land and war-torn country all for the sake of information. And sometime the knowledge you gain are more trouble than they are worth." The Toad Sage took in a deep breath before exhaling rather loudly. "Things are escalating quickly, Kakashi. The chest-pieces are all moving erratically while new one keeps joining the fray. Lines are being drawn and new players keep on stepping over them. All shares a different goal with different endgame and means to achieve such end, but all of them are malicious in intention." The Toad Sage shook his head as he remembered something truely frightening. He absently stroke the large scroll attached to his back. "Beasts once spoke of in legends now walk amongst us, powers not seen since the Warring Era resurfaced and I recently heard that a band of S-Class mercenaries are now acquiring informations regarding the Tailed Beasts."

"And you think training one Ninja can solve this?" Jiraiya snapped his head towards Kakashi, shocking the young man at the intensity of those eyes.

"What I need is not a Ninja, Kakashi. I need an Uzumaki."

* * *

"Man, Kakashi-sensei is late again!" moaned Naruto as he sat cross legged on top of the tree stump of the Third Training Ground, the place where they always meet up for their daily training. He wore a blue and orange jacket with white collar over his black sweatshirt and an orange pants with a shuriken holster on his right knee. A forehead protector with the Hidden Leaf insignia carved into it gleamed proudly from its place wrapped around his forehead.

After that talk with the mysterious hermit, he was able to go back to sleep without a problem. Although he was still confused by the dream, it no longer plagued him.

"You act like this is something new, idiot," commented a black haired boy with deep blue T-Shirt with the Uchiha clan symbol on the back, and a pair of white shorts. On both arm, he wore blue and white arm warmer that extend to cover his forearm. The same forehead protector was wrapped around his forehead as well.

The boy stood taller than Naruto by a couple of inches, and he was leaning on another tree stump with both his eyes closed instead of the blonde who was sitting on it.

"Hey, sue me for wanting our sensei to be here on time for once, Sasuke! Maybe if you would've stop accepting his excuses he may have stop coming so late already, ya jerk." The now named Sasuke snapped his face towards his fellow teammate, his onyx eyes' blackness reduce to just the pupil and two commas surrounding it with a concentrated black circle connecting them. The rest of his eyes shone blood red.

"Why you!" To the side, a pink haired girl with green eyes wearing a red qipao dress sighed. Her two teammates were always fighting over the simplest of reason. From an insult to accidental touches. She once saw Sasuke almost kill Naruto for the blonde decided to finish Sasuke's bowl of ramen for him during one of their team outing. It was quite amusing to watch until they got kicked out of the restaurant.

"What, you got a problem, ya jerk?" A grin was plastered on his face as Sasuke become even angrier. Ever since their mission to the Wave Country ended, the two grew closer. It may had something to do with the fact that Sasuke risked his life to protect Naruto from that Hunter-Nin's senbon attack. They still fight of course, but the fierceness in the attack and anger in the punches no longer exist. It was as if they were friend now. Something that he knew Sasuke would not willingly admits out loud.

"Yeah, quit yapping that mouth of yours, idiot!"

"Huh, you want a piece of me, ya jerk?" The two were leaning in, their forehead almost touching as their glare intensify.

Sakura, the pink haired girl, just sigh before stepping back to get some distance between herself and her two crazy teammates. She may had harbor a crush for Sasuke, but the feeling was dulled greatly ever since she realized what a dangerous show the world really was, and she had a front row seat to the craziness thanks to her profession as a Ninja.

As she stepped backward, her foot landed on another which caused her to react instantly and snapped her head up to see who it was. The spiky white hair along with black face mask immediately give away the identity of the stranger.

"Eeep!" She screeched in astonishment before falling on her but. Her two teammates instantly turned towards the noise and saw the only female in their team on the ground while their late sensei stood over her, but his attention was on the orange covered book he was always seen with.

"Sakura, get up. I heard that the Aburame clan breed over a hundred thousand of these fire-breeding ants when we were in the Wave Country, and I can't guarantee that they are all gone. Naruto, Sasuke, get some distance between yourself unless you guys want to confess into me your dirty little secret."

The three moved almost immediately. Sakura quickly got up while dusting her dress of dirt. All the while muttering about disgusting bugs. Sasuke and Naruto both threw themselves away from each other, landing in the dirt ground before throwing one another one more glare. Sasuke also deactivated his Sharingan.

"Great!" He exclaimed, snapping his book shut when all three of his students stood in front of him. "Now today we are going to be doing something different. I want you guys to focus on individual skill. So with that said…" Kakashi reached into his weapon pouch and pulled out three pieces of paper, ignoring the look of confusion on the three Genins' face. "There you go." He tossed them into the air.

Naruto along with his teammates caught the paper. "What does this have to do with training, sensei? This is just paper."

"Now now, Naruto, these are not your everyday run-of-the-mill pieces of paper. They are called Chakra Paper due to their unnatural sensitivity to Chakra." By now he caught the attention of all his students which caused him to smirk at how easy it was. "By running a few units of Chakra into the paper, it will tell you what your natural affinity is. Take note that you can learn techniques from different elements even though they're not your natural one. It will just be mu-"

 _Rip_

"...um. Kakashi-sensei, what does this mean?" The blonde haired Uzumaki held out his paper, or papers as the original-squared shape piece of dead cell walls are now two equivalent rectangles. The one-eyed ex-Anbu held back a sigh, mentally wondering why he was surprise. It was a very Naruto thing to do after all. At least his other students listened and -.

 _Zap_

"So, does this mean that my element is lightning?" Sasuke held out his own paper which was all scrunched up with sparks of lightning dancing about. Shoulder slumping, Kakashi decided to forgo continuing his explanation.

"Aah! What happen to my paper!?" A loud exclamation by Sakura as she witnessed her own pieces of paper crumbling away; their tone changing to muddy brown.

 _'Why did I ever promise Master Jiraiya to teach them advance techniques?'_ He wondered, sulking on the fact that none of his cute little Genins waited for him to finish his wonderful and throughout explanation on the wonder that is Chakra Paper. He even prepare a whole speech on how it was accidentally created by the First Hokage to woo the beautiful and untouchable Lady Mito of the Uzumaki clan! It was not fair! All those hours mentally going through his monologue wasted!

"What did I ever do to deserve such inconsiderate students?" Naruto just looked at him in confusion, Sasuke does not seem to care and Sakura smiled sheepishly. "To answer your question, Naruto, it means that your elemental affinity is Wind. Pretty rare outside the Hidden Sand. Yes, Sasuke, your affinity is Lightning, and yours is Earth, Sakura."

"Hm. Am I right to assume that you are going to be teaching us various Techniques corresponding to our individual elements?" Kakashi nodded with his arm cross as he ignore the sparkling in Naruto's eyes and the gapped expression on Sakura's face.

"But sensei!" The pink haired female of the group but in. "Elemental manipulations are highly advanced procedure, not to mention very taxing on Chakra. Are you sure we should be attempting anything so advance just months out of the Academy?"

"You're right like always, Sakura. Learning to harness one's Chakra and transforming it into elemental techniques are highly advanced stuff and are recommended to not be taught to anything below a Chūnin rank." Sakura smile when she thought that her instructor was agreeing with her while Sasuke just glared at both of them. Sakura for trying to hamper his progress and Kakashi for blatantly ignoring his question. "But I believe you guys can do it." He smiled at the, surprising the three Genins with the honesty and sheer conviction in his voice. "I have faith in all of you, my cute little Genins, so why don't you have a little faith in yourself."

"O-Okay." She managed to stuttered out, her cheeks blooming.

"Beside," he stated with a flick of his hand. "Didn't I have you guys run up and down that waterfall for the past week to increase your reserve and stabilize your control?"

"Uah… Don't remind me." Naruto physically shivered at the thought of what happen last week. They had just come back from that mission in the Wave Country when their sensei announced that they will no longer be taking mission for a while and upping their training. Something about not wanting three teenagers' death on his conscious or something. Naruto could not remember because he was too busy cursing Kakashi both mentally and physically.

The man had them jogged around the border of the Hidden Leaf for three hours while he was reading that orange book of his. Then he gave them an hour long break to rest up where he proceeded to take advantage of their tired state to talk about the exploits of his youth. It was just mainly about how he wooed the various princesses and daughters of Lords and Daimyos during his missions. Naruto shivered again as he remembered that one particular story Kakashi mentioned involving the princess of the Water Country, a hotel room and two Shadow Clones. The blonde haired Ninja had not use that technique ever since! Well, at least now he knew that whatever the clones experienced are transferred to him after they are expelled. It certainly explained all those phantom pains he felt all the time. Now he knew he wasn't crazy, thank God for that!

Anyway, after the annoying and vivid story time was over, they would all head to get some grubs in the village. This usually result in a food fight between himself and Sasuke, and the two of them being banned from the store. Man, they were banned from more than five stores already! And the worst part was that those stores all sell delicious ramen! Oh, the Lord sure know no mercy.

After the intense dodging session, they went back to Training Ground 3 where, after teaching them how to stick their feet to the surface of water, their sensei used some Earth technique to create a large cliff next to the riverbed and somehow conjured up a waterfall. Naruto still does not understand how water could just rain down by the hogsheads. He then ordered the three Genin to run up and down the waterfall until he deems it enough. The timeframe usually varies to how long it took Kakashi to finished that damned book of his. If they somehow ran out of Chakra like Sakura does ever so often, then they would need to just swim in the river until their Chakra replenished. The worst part was that it was night during these session so the waters are guaranteed to be freezing cold. Naruto could still remember all the time he fell from the waterfall midway due to his poor Chakra control. He could still feel the cold embrace of the waters every time he closes his eyes.

"No more question...good!" The retired Anbu Captain put both his arm up to create a cross sign. In two puffs of smoke, two Kakashi appeared, looking identical to the original. Right down to the boredom in their eyes. "Since all three of you possesses different elements, I'm gonna teach them to you individually. Naruto, come here."

Shrugging his shoulder, the blonde walked up to Kakashi in the middle, the original one.

"I'm gonna take Naruto to a special training ground, you guys stay here. See ya!" Putting his hand on Naruto's shoulder, the two disappeared in a plume of smokes, leaving behind two confuse students and two indifferent clones.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"So, are we going to do anything?"

"..."

"Of course."

"..."

"What exactly are we supposed to do?"

"Training."

"..."

"...Kakashi, you bastard."

* * *

"..woah." Naruto grabbed hold of the nearest tree he could find and put his hand on his stomach. "What the heck was that, Kakashi-sensei?!" He could feel his head throbbing in pain from the technique used by the white haired Jōnin. Said Jōnin honestly appeared confused at his reaction.

"You've never traveled using the Body Flicker Technique before? But you told me you traveled with Lord Third on multiple occasion." Groaning from the intense piercing headache, Naruto was barely able to hear what his teacher said.

"The old man likes to travel by foot wherever we go. He never used something as horrible as this!" His cheeks were red but subsiding quickly as the pain reduced. The white haired man just chuckled nervously while rubbing the back of his head.

"Sorry about that. I just thought Lord Third would use that technique wherever he goes considering how busy he always is. The pain will go away soon enough. It's just a reaction from your body having gone through immense stress from the high speed movement. It won't have any lasting injury, so don't worry about it. Considering your Uzumaki heritage and the Nine Tailed seal inside you, you would not even feel it in the next few seconds." He thought the last part.

"Tch, whatever." Turning his head to the side in exasperation, Naruto took in the surrounding landscape. The ground was hardened dirt with twigs littering the area. Trees with large bark and luminous green leaves spread as far as the eyes could see. Base on these observations, they could be anywhere in the Hidden Leaf or even outside considering how the whole village and beyond was covered in trees. "Where are we anyway?"

"This, Naruto," started the ex-Anbu as he pulled out his favorite novel from his weapon pouch and opened it to an unmarked page. "...is the Phantasm Forest located on top of the Hokage Monument. And to answer your unasked question, this is where we will be training from now on."

"But, sensei, what about Sakura and Sasuke? Shouldn't they be here as well?" The three of them were somewhat close now and he will surely miss them. The White Fang's son just shook his head.

"For the next week, we are going to be working on individual skill, and having other people around will just be a distraction. And don't worry about the other, we will all be starting to do mission together next week."

"Aw, alright."

"Great, now come here, Naruto." Closing his book, Kakashi wrapped an arm around his student's shoulder, ignoring the uncomfortable expression on Naruto's face. No doubt due to him not use to contact. Leading the confused boy deeper into the forest, he asked him. "By the way, have you ever heard of this thing called the Adamantine Sealing Chains?"

"..."

"No? Well, don't worry about it. Your sensei will teach it to you." His body shivered from how Kakashi worded his sentence.

* * *

 **(Author's Notes)**

 **So this is a new story I've written up. The ideas been in my mind ever since I started bench watching the Naruto Shippuden anime and came across the part where Naruto trained to control Kurama. I always thought that the Adamantine Sealing Chains are just plane awesome. The ability to force a force of nature such as the Nine Tail into submission is epic in itself. Plus, I always like how they remind me of Gilgamesh's Chains of Heaven from Fate/Stay Night. It was a crime to not make the chains the official Uzumaki Clan's bloodline. So with that in mind, I decided to write up this little interpretation on how I think the story should have been like.**

 **Don't worry, I won't bash any character. I quite like Sasuke and really like the idea of best friends fighting on another so Sasuke will most likely leave the village, but for an entirely different reason than the anime/manga. Not from revenge, but rather betrayal. I have the whole idea sorted out in my mind right now, and are looking forward to putting it down.**

 **One more thing. I really like the summons and Tailed Beasts in the anime, but I think there should be more Chakra using monster in the story, so don't be surprise if you see mythical creatures appearing in the story. Oh yeah, I already have the pairing figured out and its going to be Naruto with two other girls. You'll probably find out one of them in the next chapter while the other will come later.**

 **Anyhow, I hope you guys will support me in this endeavor, and click on that little favorite/follow button. Reviewing is great also since I really like to hear what you guys thought about it so far.**


	2. Something New

**Chapter 2 - Something New**

 **Published Date - January 12, 2017**

 **Writer - Master of Awe**

 **Disclaimer - A publicly recognize characters and others belongs to their respective owner.**

* * *

"Argh! Damn!" cried a blonde haired shinobi as he stood in front of an open area with an abundance of trees surrounding it. They were mostly moderate size oaks with multiple, abnormally large birch placed randomly. Several of which are now on the ground with splinters scattered as far as the eye could see. "This is harder than I thought." Behind him, ten ethereal chains rose from his back, swirling around hypnotically with gleaming, golden tips.

Sighing, the blonde plotted down on the ground before laying down completely; his body drenched in sweat. The chains slowly retracted back into his body, replenishing Naruto's chakra reserve. Not that he needed it of course. Even after all the training he did, he still maintain more than half of his reserve. He could control the chains just fine, but for some reason, whenever he summoned more than nine, they all just stop following his order. It took him several hours just to stop them from randomly cutting down trees.

He had been training here for the past six days ever since Kakashi brought him here, and dropped the bomb on him. Apparently 'Uzumaki' was not just some random civilian name, but a rather powerful clan that ruled over an island nation.

He was quite excited at the prospect of being related to royalty, especially since his sensei stated that he was the direct descendant of the former Head of the clan. It made him wonder how Kakashi knew this, and even asked the man himself about it, but his sensei somehow managed to dodge the question by actually teaching him something for once.

For someone who does not seem to care about anything around him, Kakashi surprisingly knew quite a lot about the Uzumaki. He explained how due to abnormal genetics, the Uzumaki possessed minor regenerative abilities. It could not heal a large stab wound in an instant, but it sure does speed up the process. When Naruto express his skepticism, his sensei threw a kunai at him which left a small scratch on his exposed shoulder. (He made Naruto take off his jacket during training.) The blonde haired jinchūriki watched in amazement as smokes appeared in his open wound that was quickly sealed shut. After he tried to punch the man who threw it in the first place.

Kakashi then explained to him that the Uzumaki were quite known for their skill in the art of Fūinjutsu, a very abstract and difficult technique to learn and nearly impossible to master. He even commented on how it was debatably the most difficult out of all the Ninja Arts. The ex-Anbu captain only really know how to perform storage seals as well as a single type of suppression seal. He spent the first day of training going through the theories of how storage seals are basically a door to a pocket dimension. The sizes of the dimension as well as the key(s) depended on how one arrange the seals, and the medium use to contain the seal. Who the seals were wriiten does not matter. It could be anything from normal ink to dogs' blood.

It was pretty surprising to the war veteran that Naruto picked it up quite easily, really easily in fact. It made him feel quite embarrassed since he still remembered how confused he was when the Fourth Hokage explained some seals to him. He just reasoned it to those Uzumaki genes in the boy's DNA. It was also quite embarrassing when Naruto asked Kakashi to show him more examples of Fūinjutsu, and the older man had to reply that was the furthest his knowledge of the Sealing Arts stretched to.

Shaking his head, Naruto willed a small chain to rise from his biceps and wrapped itself around his forearm before the tip reached his palm. The silvery glow of the chains contrast greatly with the golden ember of the scorpion-like tip. He remembered how Kakashi explained that in rare cases, an Uzumaki will be born with a unique type of chakra that will let them summon and control these ethereal chains.

They were called Adamantine Sealing Chains, and according to his sensei, it share the same property as the First Hokage's Wood Release with its ability to suppressed the corrosive chakra of the Tailed Beasts. That was something that made him train extra hard since he wanted to one day fully tame the beast inside him that was responsible for all loneliness he experienced during his childhood.

Kakashi explained to him in great detail how to perform the technique. Ranging from how much chakra he should use, and how he needed to manipulate the energy in order for it to take physical shape. Naruto was too focused on learning the technique after hearing about its unique property that he did not ask how his sensei knew any of this.

Focusing on the link between himself and the technique, he willed it to extend past his arm and wrapped itself around the thick branch of the large birch tree several feet in front of him. Tugging the chain, Naruto zipped through the tree lines and spun once around the branch before landing on said branch on one knee. Retracting the chain back into his arm, he ran threw several hand signs before extending one out.

" **Ninja Art: Slithering Steel Snakes**!" Out of his right forearm appear four glistening fangs followed by an infinite supply of interlocking loops. The four chains approached the aimed target in less than second, tearing through the birch tree perpendicular to where he was before expanding themselves on the other side to create thresholds. "Argggghhhh!" His muscle visibly bulged as he pours hundreds of units of chakra through his right arm to increase his strength. With a loud cry and sweats pouring down his arm, Naruto uprooted the tree.

"Aaaahhhhhh!" With one quick pull, the large birch tree that stood for more than a hundred year was sent flying towards the blonde ninja. Propelling himself forward with chakra enhanced push, Naruto soon flew above the still suspending bark with his kunai held up high, emitting soft screeching due to the added wind element. (Another thing that Kakashi taught him this past week.)

"Ha!" Swinging his iron kunai down, the blonde haired jinchūriki, landed on the hard ground with his head down and on one knee.

[Crash] [Crash]

"Strong as always," he muttered, watching the chains slowly retracted back into his body. Naruto did not really pull the tree down with his strength alone. That would just be impossible for him to do at his current strength. What he did was slowly retracting his chains back to him, causing the tree to come along for the ride. It was still quite physically taxing though, so he had to continuously pumped chakra through his arm.

Lesser trees parted and fell from the large barks that fell on them. Numerous leaves filled branches reached for the sky while uncounted amount of roots shivered from exposure to sunlight.

"...Oh my." Small, delicate ruby lips parted as pale, slim fingers pressed against it. Pale fingers straightened while some curled. Ruby lips opened once more as sable eyes gleamed with mischievousness and desire. " **Demonic Illusion: Malice of the Forest Guardians**. Now, how will you handle this?"

"What the?" Standing up from his crouch position, Naruto took in the strange sight that was the two broken remnants of a once great tree slowly conversed and twisting into a slightly humanoid form. The top half of the tree splitter it's lower barks into four section to serve as legs while the multitude of branches formed many arms while the rest morphed into a demonic head. The other half, the lower half, possessed three legs comprised of the largest roots while the rest formed tentacles that circulate around its form. Unlike its brother, this ...thing does not have arm, instead relying on the tentacles, and its head is just the large bark with hollowed holes.

"▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉▉!" Cried the two creatures, their own blank eyes peering into his own sapphire.

"This is certainly new," he muttered, twirling his kunai while circulating some chakra around his arms. Extending his right leg while crouching low, he ready himself in a rather unorthodox style he created himself. (Honestly, he just made it up a second ago.) "I guess Iruka-sensei was right all those years ago when he said that the forests around the Hidden Leaf were protected by some mystical guardian." He suddenly smiled awkwardly. "I guess that I should apologize for hurting your kind, I suppose. To be fair, I was training to get stronger so I could protect more of your kind from enemy Ninjas." The Leafy creature thrusted it's spearlike arm at him which he barely dodge.

"I see that you didn't buy that." Shrugging, he pulled off a sheepish smile. "It was a long shot anyway. Whoop!" Snapping his neck to the side, he narrowingly escape the slash from the tentacle-like root. "I guess you want to fight now." The upper half appeared in back of him, ready to cut him in half with its two large and really sharp branches. "I'll take that as a yes." His left hand quickly grabbed hold of the not sharp part of the branch and held it in place while his other held a kunai that was used to quickly severed another several branches off with wind-infused strike.

Turning towards the creature, he punched it square in the face with all his might, sending it a couple of feet back before his free hand snapped into action and grabbed several shurikens which he threw at the slowly approaching tentacles. Since he did not infused it with any wind-chakra, the iron weapon just lodged themselves into the wooden flesh, and did not slow it down at all. On the contrary, it just made the attack much more dangerous.

"I really need to instinctively infuse wind-chakra to every weapon I use from now on." Too late to dodge, he crossed both arm and winced when the shurikens he threw earlier break through his skin.

"Ha!" Smirking hard, he grabbed onto the barky creature with both arm, ignoring the pain he felt from moving the arm that was still connected to the iron weapon. "You're out!" Chains burst from his chest and penetrated through every inch of the creature before tearing it apart by moving away from each other. He watched as the disassembled pieces disappeared into silver mist. "Isn't that something." Pains exploded from his back as two new slash mark appear.

"Damn! I forgot about this one." Turning around, he locked weapon with the leafy creature, disregarding the new wounds as he knew that they would heal themselves soon enough. The scratches on his arm was already closing themselves. Using his remaining arm, he used it to form a hand sign. Two clones suddenly popped into existence before they both punched the creature right in the chest. They then imprison the monster by locking both of its arm. Two more clones suddenly popped into existence on both side of him as he pulled out six shurikens and held them between his knuckles. The clones followed his example.

"I won't make the same mistake as last time." The shurikens suddenly all emitted a soft screeching shrill. "Goodbye. I would say I'll miss you, but I don't want the last thing you hear to be a lie." With his piece said, all three Naruto threw their shurikens with perfect accuracy, severing multiple limbs from its body. It now just look like a pile of destroyed trees.

"Aah, that was a good exercise, get the blood pumping." Cracking his neck, he mentally cut off the chakra to his clone which caused them to expelled into smoke that completely engulfed him. "But what the hell were those things anyway? I've never seen anything like that before." He suddenly smirk, sensing a flare of chakra not far from where he was. It was like the person want him to find them.

His body blurred out as he dashed to his destination.

Eyes closed, crimson lips tugged in the corner to form a small smile.

"I knew you would find me." A kunai was pressed firmly on her milky throat, so close that any movement would draw blood.

"Oh, and how would you know that, stranger?" Naruto stood behind, his torso pressed against her soft, firm backside while his chin rested on her shoulder. At this close range, he could smell the unique fragrance of the girl, and it made him almost lightheaded. Lily with a hint of pine, a strange but not horrible combination.

"Because I've been watching you…" His kunai maliciously tear into her throat, ripped opened the thin membrane of skin before crushing the blood vessel inside, but he knew it would not accomplish anything as the voice came from behind him. "Naruto Uzumaki."

"You know my name," he commented, straightening his back but remained fixated on the slump body on the ground, taking note of how the body seemed to be melting and the visage turned oily. "And I must assume you know the significance of it." He could practically see the smirk on her face as her clear and melodious voice reached him.

"Hm, how can I not? It is not everyday one are allow to play host with the Uzumaki heir." He could feel her amusement in the air.

"You do know who I am," he muttered with a smirk. "Oh, are you saying that this clearing is your personal field?"

"This entire forest is my domain." Naruto could feel the pride, as well as the underlying loneliness in her musical voice. Perhaps she was some sort of performer. No, her voice sounded too young for that.

"Sure it is." He bend his neck to look behind him, and saw a shadowy visage of a clearly feminine body.

"You doubt my claim?" Even with the shadow clouding his view, he could see the pearly white teeth exposed no doubt due to the smirk on her face. Shrugging, he turned his entire body towards her and grinned.

"Yeah, I kinda do." Her smirk widened.

"Oh, I see. Well, I just have to reiterate you as to why this place is called the Phantasm Forest." Amidst the dense forest, he could make out several darkening in the wood, and his senses picked up several chakra signatures. The grin on his face morphed into a slightly frown while he contemplate the situation. Somehow, the girl (He assumed based on her heavenly voice.) created chakra-construct and managed to manipulate it to her will. That kind of technique was borderline sorcery, and he does not believe in magic. "Good luck."

As soon as she said it, four blurs sprang from the forest and surrounded Naruto in the four cardinal directions. Instinctively, four ethereal chains shot out of his body and pierced the hide of the four creatures, turning them into silvery mist before he could take in their appearance.

"Wasn't that something," he commented offhandedly before his senses kicked into high gear. Shooting his fist forward, he slammed it at the cheek of the approaching creature, taking notes of the soft fur caressing his tan skin before the beast dissolved like its brethren. Spinning, Naruto delivered a roundhouse kick towards the beast dashing at him from behind, retracting his chains as they serve no use like that. He also took note of the fact that the creature appears to be man-like wolves standing on two legs with muscles rippling across their body and shiny, dark fur covering its form.

Quickly grabbing an unsealed scroll from his pouch, Naruto threw it into the sky. In a puff of smoke, he summoned two Fūma Shuriken, one on each arm. He swung one up, cutting through another beast but not letting the weapon go while spinning the other one in his arm. Sensing a large horde of beast approaching, he coated the spinning shuriken with wind chakra before throwing it at the horde. All he saw are the silver mist that they left behind. Using the remaining Fūma Shuriken, he threw it at the girl, but was looking at the opposite direction.

"You seem to had forgotten that I could sense chakra," he commented to empty space right as his weapon sliced through the girl's flesh. She disappeared into a silver mist like the rest.

"Oh, but I didn't," her melodious voice seemed to be coming from everywhere at once, but Naruto's gaze remained fixated on the same spot. "After all, energy perception is just one of the many talents the Uzumaki are known for." She appeared before him, standing tall although her height was eclipsed by Naruto's own impressive 5'8. If there were such a thing as perfect beauty, Naruto was sure he found it. Her skin, smooth and pale, reminding him greatly of the moon's surface although hers was free from blemishes. Her hair, rich sable appeared wavy and look, running past her delicate shoulder and down her slender body. The blackness of her kimono along with the white lilies images etched onto the fabric greatly contrast with the paleness of her skin tone, and did a poor job in hiding her curvy and firm body. The main attraction was her face, however. So soft and delicate, it looked like the Host of Heaven themselves sculpted her to be their equal. Free of any blemishes, her pouty, crimson lips emerged from the shadow, her button nose cute, her carefully cutted eyebrows reminiscent of ages past princess, and her beautiful amber eyes filled with wonder and awe. "And you, sir…" she leaned in, picking his chest with her slender, alabaster index finger. "...are quite talented." He gave her a foxy smirk, not giving any indication of how his heartbeat sped up from her close proximity.

"I thank you, my dear lady." Bending to his knee, he grabbed hold of her hand, taking note of how smooth and cold they are. It seemed she had not got out into the sun much. Pressing his lips on her knuckle, he relished on such smooth sensation "It is truly an honor to be praise by such a strong and powerful individual such as yourself." Naruto mentally wonder why he was behaving in such strange manner, but he could not help but act his best around her. Her aura practically screamed royalty and life of privilege, and he was influenced to do as such. His fluttering heart and feverish sweats had nothing to do with this.

She giggled, a sound he could listen to all day.

"Oh, aren't you a gentleman," she praised, giving him an incredulous look with one eyebrow up and one of her eye slightly narrowed. She look quite cute like that. "Considering that you just pierced my throat not a moment ago." Naruto stood up, towering over her by four inches.

"But that you was an illusion, so I had no qualm about destroying it." A kunai suddenly pierced her stomach. Her eyes widened in astonishment, silently asking him a question with her eyes. "The same as right now. Don't worry, I'm already on my way to you. I guessed I just want to meet such a beautiful young woman face to face, that's all."

"Ho-How," she managed to raised out, her eyes foggy and unfocused. The clone just give her a foxy smirk.

"I sense a trace of chakra coming not far from here. A chakra signature that matches yours exactly. So unless you have an identical twin, this is all an illusion." She managed to strained a smile before collapsing, disappearing into fine mist. Naruto soon followed, exploding into a plume of smokes.

Up atop a tree, a spiky, white haired Jōnin watched with keen eye before he too disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

* * *

Mirage Ends used to sanctioned the ancient clan of Kurama, one of the four Noble Clan of the Hidden Leaf alongside the Hyūga, Uchiha, and Senju. All those belonging to the main branch resided here alongside inheritor of the Kurama famed Bloodline Limit, Forsaken Phantasm.

The three-story tall architecture masterpiece alone indicated the wealths and resources available to the clan at their prime. It was a manor on the hillside, granting the occupants clear view of the village down below. It was truly a great engineering marvel, but to Yakumo Kurama, it was more than that.

It was a place she called home.

A place that housed her family. Her kind and beautiful mother that took care of her since her birth and raised her to be a poised and intelligent young lady. Her strict but caring father that taught her how to live amongst the snake that was the Hidden Leaf politicians and guide her through clan responsibilities. They were gone now, ashes of the past she wished to forget for if she forget about them, she will no longer mourn their passing.

Their death, at her hand. All because she could not control her own power.

Her once loving home filled with warmth was now cold and stale. Her beloved kin from the same clan replaced by strangers in white garbed whose sole responsibility are to administer medicines to her. The unyielding yet humorous guards replaced by unforgiving and emotionless Anbu.

It was no longer her home, it was her prison.

And she had no one to blame this on other than herself. She tried, of course, to pin the blame on someone else. Her former sensei, Kurenai if she remembered correctly, for not formally teaching her how to perform Genjutsu and giving up on her for not being able to learn fast enough. After months of isolation, she came to a realization that it was not Kurenai's fault that she could not learn fast enough, it was hers. It was her fault the Hokage ordered her to be sealed up, deeming her too dangerous to let roam free.

She cried, shouting hateful words towards the Third Hokage for sealing away her power, and as a result, the used of the legs as well. She screamed such vulgarness towards the old man, hating him for condemning her to such a fate. She could do nothing but watch as her family fortunes dwindle into mere dimes, her family estate sold away to help pay for the needs of the clan.

The worst part was that as heiress to the Kurama and sole survivor of the main branch, the barriers around this estate fell under her control. Thanks to the Fūinjutsu powered seals, she was able to monitor every and all activities in the Phantasm Forest and even project an astral image of herself. Such cruelty to let her experience the joy of the morning sun but never witness it for herself. The Hokage can be quite cruel at time. She remained alone (She doesn't count her handlers for they never interact with her other than the bare minimum.) until six days ago when a rather peculiar blonde boy and his equally weird sensei appeared out of nowhere.

She was astonished, no one ever came all the way up here to train, no matter how much a solitary they are. The Hidden Leaf Village was known for their abundance of Training Ground, and forested areas where their ninjas could practice in peace. Plus, the Phantasm Forest had quite the reputation for being haunted, mostly due to her crying escaping into the barrier. She had nothing else to do but watch.

And so she did. Yakumo watched with amazement at the boy's determination and unwillingness to give up. She marveled at his resilience, getting up despite the beating that white haired sensei of his did to him. He never once complained, never stop improving, and never stop training. Very soon, he became her sole reason for getting up in the morning, her object of obsession.

But very soon, she grew tired of just looking at him train. She wants to meet him, so she sent and astral image of herself there, making sure to stay close so that he will notice her, but he was too preoccupied with mastering that technique of his, so she sent him something to get his attention. The seals the Third Hokage placed on her only restricted her from using Forsaken Phantasm. It does not prevent her from using regular Genjutsu though. The old man probably just thought she does not know how without her Bloodline Limit. Old Fool.

The distraction worked as plan, and he finally noticed her. She took in great pleasure when she noticed his eyes lingered on her form when they were talking. It seems he approved of what he saw, but she did not expect him to see through her astral form. Although, now that she thought about it, it kind of make sense. She knew Naruto could sense chakra, he demonstrated that ability during training with his sensei, but somehow the thought of him noticing that the mirage was not her true self did not occurred to her.

[Boom] [Boom]

'Ah, he's here,' the thought registered in her head, although she did not move. She never anticipated that he would come to her manor like this. Yakumo just thought that they will talk for a couple of minutes before making him promise to come visit her again. Well, she did attack him so that might not work so well either. But still, she does not know how to react to this.

She did not have long to think as she felt something cold on her neck, and a hot whisper down her ear.

"There you are, my secret stalker." She shivered at the pleasurable sensation flowing down her spine. Her own frightened amber orbs met his amused sapphire eyes. "Now, why don't we have a little talk before that Anbu outside find out that they are chasing after a Shadow Clone."

* * *

"Ooh~. Jiraiya, my boy, you are no doubt my favorite student." An old man garbed in white robe giggled as he read the book clutched tightly in both hands. His white and red hat sat motionless atop the ebony desk. Numerous folders regarding requests and mission statement lay untouched also, stacking high into the air.

Flipping to another page, the red-faced Hokage of the Hidden Leaf giggled.

"Able to bring such life into mere text, I applaud myself for teaching you so well." With a content sigh, a flip through a few pages, having memorized them all. "And I used to think you were a no talent loudmouth…" A man with long, spiky white hair stood behind the Hokage, his eyebrows scrunched up while his mouth slightly parted open.

"Jeez, it's nice to know what my sensei really thought of me." While the Head of the Sarutobi clan jumped up in fright, Jiraiya casually walked towards the middle of the room.

"Uh...Jiraiya, my boy, long time no see. How are you?" He quickly uttered the question while shoving the book back into his desk drawer. The Sannin just shrugged, standing in front of the door with fingers tapping his chin: an expression of complete contemplation.

"Good. Let's see, I think it was 4 inches from the door…" Calculating the distance from the door in his head, Jiraiya walked to the specific spot. "6 inches to the right, and 7 inches 45 degree to the left." The Third Hokage watched as his student walked around his office while mumbling some number. Maybe the Sage finally lost it after taking one too many beating from the women in his life.

"Um...Jiraiya, what exactly are you doing?" The man just continued to walk all over his office, muttering all the while. The famed Professor was starting to get worried until the Sannin landed on the far left corner of his rather spacious office.

"I found you!" He stated while pointing his right index finger dramatically at the wooden floorboard underneath him. Hiruzen's worries evaporated; he was now scared.

"Do you need to go to the hospital, my boy? I can arrange it so only the pretty nurses and doctors attend to you," offered the Hokage, feeling increasingly worried about his student's mentality. Said student just gave him a weird look.

"What? No! Well...Maybe? No!" Shaking his head, he turned his attention back towards the the floor. "I'm looking for this," he said, pointing to the a peculiar floorboard that looked identical to its neighbors.

"Um...What am I looking at exactly?" Jiraiya crouched down while biting his thumb, drawing blood.

"Wait for it…" Placing his bloodied thumb on the floorboard, he watched impassively as several stroke-like marking burned into existence around the board before the board suddenly shifted, shrinking into the shape of a large key made of cold steel. The Third watched in awe at the casual use of such high level Fūinjutsu.

"Did you just transformed my floor into a key?" Jiraiya just gave him an odd look.

"Really?" The white haired Sannin gave his sensei an amuse smirk. "You do know transmutation is just fairy tail, right?" His sensei huffed, not liking the fact that his student was making fun of him for his lack of knowledge regarding Fūinjutsu. It was the most difficult out of all the Ninja Arts!

"Hump! Can you just tell me what you just did?" Despite being one of the strongest Ninja alive, Hiruzen was not a prideful man and was willing to do quite a lot for insight on such an interesting technique. He was not call 'The Professor' for nothing, after all. "It looks very difficult to create if those seals are any indication."

The Sage shrugged, spinning the key in his hand before putting them in his pocket.

"Minato always forget to bring his house key to work, and Kushina would never let him in without mocking him, so he decided to keep a spare key here just in case." The Hokage nodded.

"Thank you for the interesting information regarding our Fourth Hokage's forgetfulness, but that still did not answer my question. Not in the slightest!" He grew slightly angry when his own student give him than damnable smirk.

"Shouldn't you know this, sensei?" He received a heated glare and flinched. The old man was not called the God of Shinobi without a reason. "Fine, jeez. It was just a normal piece of plank with space manipulation sigils inscribed onto it."

"So when you activated your chakra along with some blood, it switched places with the key, right?" Jiraiya gave him a smirk. Honestly, that was pretty close, but not quite right in the term of switching places.

"Something like that," he muttered as he walked towards the door.

"Wait, Jiraiya!" Freezing mid step, the white haired shinobi inclined his head towards the still standing Hokage. "Why you going to Minato's house?"

"That's doesn't really matter, sensei," the Sannin replied with a shrug before giving his old teacher a smirk. "Beside, you have other problem to deal with."

"What prob…" He asked but Jiraiya disappeared into thin air. Sighing, the aged Hokage tried to get back to his desk when an Anbu suddenly appeared before him on his knee with his porcelain mask facing towards the floor.

"Lord Hokage, Naruto had been arrested for entering private property without proper consent, sir!

Sighing, Hiruzen Sarutobi closed his eyes and took in a large gulp of air while rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"Today is just not my day," he muttered, looking at the kneeled form of his Anbu with irritation firmly displayed on his face.

* * *

 **(Author's Notes)**

 **Man, that took longer than I expected it. Mostly because winter break if over and school works been piling on me. It doesn't matter anyway, but I am planning on continuing the story but it will just take longer. Please note that this is an alternate universe so some things might be different and a lot of things are going to change.**

 **Personally, I always like the Akatsuki, and hated the fact that their members were killed off so easily. I'm definitely changing that in this story. Now some of you might notice that I gave Naruto some very powerful techniques, but do not worry, I am going to be increasing the power level of those around him as well. Well, those that I think deserve it.**

 **Like that Sasori guy and Deidara. The latter has always been my favorite character out of everyone else.**

 **Anyway, I hope you follow this story, and don't forget to review. I really appreciate the support.**


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